Telemedicine: emerging opportunities and future trends

Remote location, lack of specialty services, or managed care capitation contribute to limited access to health care. As reimbursement rates decline, availability to expert or high-tech care is affected. The need to "make do" with available personnel, existing technologies, or dated facilities is not uncommon and affects the quality of health care. Telemedicine accounts for these issues and serves as an alternative to providing interactive evaluation and management of patients. As computer hardware and software improve and become less costly, access to this technology will be more commonplace and establish itself as an acceptable standard of practice. The Internet may serve as a highway to resources that currently are not available in rural areas or in third-world countries. Access to Web sites that provide comprehensive and instructive material is just one part of a complex, developing area of health care.